Haydock & Ascot Runners

Sadly Ffos Las failed to pass it's inspection this morning - hardly surprising really when you consider that parts of the track are underwater!  We are still left with some good jumping action at Haydock and Ascot as well as an all-weather flat card at Wolverhampton.  The stable has runners at the remaining National Hunt fixtures - Barney Cool, The Pier and Dan Breen run at Ascot, while Gevrey Chambertin (pictured above) travels up north to compete at Haydock.  Gevrey Chambertin is the full-brother of Grands Crus and he goes in a hot-looking novices'  hurdle where four of the seven runners won last time out - this is the race that I am most looking forward to seeing this afternoon.

I was in the betting shop in Brixham yesterday afternoon and of few of the old punters were not very happy with a leading trainer who had an odds-on shot beaten by a longer-priced stablemate...of course, they were all talking through their pockets.  I remember similar rumblings when Richard Dunwoody chose the wrong one for us many years ago - it can happen!

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I was amused by the headlines in the sports pages "Torres to fill his boots under Benitez!"  Why should a new manager make a huge difference to a solitary player?  I don't see why he should suddenly be among the goals...has he not been trying for his former managers?

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Quite predictably Monty Panesar has made a good start to his comeback test match against India and has taken early wickets on a spinners wicket...it does beg the question, you know what sort of wicket you are going to get - so why not play him in the first test?

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Most football supporters are good blokes but the Lazio fan who stabbed a Spurs supporter last night should be locked up and the club should be kicked out of all European competitions.  Someone knows who did this, so give him up...these people are not supporters, they are thugs.  Adopting the hard line in these cases is the only way we can stop it happening again.